Cool. Gotta love T-Bone... Interesting to read he golfs. I'm picturing a little Caddyshack right now. A good pairing would definitely be Bill Murray. "It's in the hole!" Looking forward to hearing / seeing this project evolve.

I had the same question when I heard the news about this set a while ago. Hard to predict, but Elvis is clearly close to T-bone, and not only does he have a commercial profile high enough to potentially enhance the this set's sales projects (but, admittedly, not enough to guarantee a hit), he also has repeatedly spoken (not to mention sung) of the merits of several of Dylan's Basement Tapes songs.

What's more, I can think of EC previously covering (mostly, alongside other artists) the following "Basement Tapes" songs:

Bruce Springsteen and Elvis would be my obvious choices. Bruce got overlooked with the Woody Guthrie project. To my mind Elvis is the man BUT you can never tell with these things. The seemingly obvious can take you down the wrong path.

So it could be a female...

...although if I had any sort of decent reputation I'd stake it on Elvis.

Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens, Taylor Goldsmith, Jim James & Marcus Mumford Gather In Capitol Studios With Producer & Project Creator T Bone Burnett To Write Music For Long-Lost Bob Dylan Lyrics From 1967 And Record Completed Songs For New Album

Recording is nearly complete for Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes (http://TheNewBasementTapes.com), an album project from Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops) Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket), Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons) and producer T Bone Burnett, who are in Capitol Studios together to create music for two-dozen recently discovered lyrics written by Bob Dylan in 1967 during the period that generated the recording of the legendary Basement Tapes.

The album will be released later this year by Electromagnetic Recordings/Harvest Records (Capitol Music Group), and will be accompanied by a Showtime documentary titled, Lost Songs: The Basement Tapes Continued, directed by Sam Jones (the Wilco documentary, I Am Trying To Break Your Heart). The film will present an exclusive and intimate look at the making of Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes set against the important and historical cultural backdrop of Bob Dylan’s original Basement Tapes.

Bob Dylan’s original Basement Tapes – recorded by Dylan in 1967 with musicians who would later achieve their own fame as The Band – have fascinated and enticed successive generations of musicians, fans and cultural critics for nearly five decades. This collective recorded more than a hundred songs in the basement of a small house in upstate New York that summer and fall, including dozens of newly-written Bob Dylan future classics such as, “I Shall Be Released,” “The Mighty Quinn,” “This Wheel’s On Fire,” “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” and “Tears Of Rage.”

Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes celebrates the discovery of new Bob Dylan lyrics from that noted 1967 period and marks a unique creative opportunity for Burnett, Costello, Giddens, Goldsmith, James and Mumford, who are bringing them to life nearly 50 years later. For Burnett, whom Dylan has entrusted with this endeavor, it was imperative to provide an environment in which these artists could thrive. “Great music is best created when a community of artists gets together for the common good. There is a deep well of generosity and support in the room at all times, and that reflects the tremendous generosity shown by Bob in sharing these lyrics with us.”

According to Jones, “The discovery of these previously unknown Bob Dylan songs that were thought lost since 1967 is the stuff of Hollywood fiction and a find of truly historical proportions. It is a unique opportunity to film T Bone and these great artists as they collaborate with a young Bob Dylan, and each other, to create new songs and recordings. These days and nights in the studio have been nothing less than magical.” Jones will weave these studio sessions into a broader narrative that will incorporate the stories behind the original Basement Tapes, expound on their cultural significance and chart their enduring influence.

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.

SHOWTIME® ANNOUNCES LOST SONGS: THE BASEMENT TAPES CONTINUED, A DOCUMENTARY FILM BY SAM JONES CHRONICLING DISCOVERY OF LOST BOB DYLAN LYRICS FROM 1967 AS T BONE BURNETT & FIVE RENOWNED MUSICIANS COME TOGETHER TO FINISH SONGS AND RECORD ALBUM

Today, SHOWTIME announced LOST SONGS: THE BASEMENT TAPES CONTINUED, an original SHOWTIME documentary produced by T Bone Burnett and Sam Jones, and directed by Jones. The documentary will present an exclusive and intimate look at five of today’s most acclaimed artists - Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops) Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket) and Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons) – as they create music for two-dozen recently discovered lyrics written by Bob Dylan. These verses were penned by Dylan in the summer of 1967 and originally intended for The Basement Tapes, a diverse and influential body of work. A rare look inside the creative process of recording an album and the discovery of long-lost Dylan lyrics, LOST SONGS: THE BASEMENT TAPES CONTINUED is set to premiere later this year on SHOWTIME.

LOST SONGS: THE BASEMENT TAPES CONTINUED will capture this unprecedented musical collaboration between these five musicians and 13-time Grammy winner T Bone Burnett, as they collaborate with a 26-year-old Bob Dylan, and record an album of these newly completed compositions in Hollywood’s famed Capitol Studios. Jones, who is directing the film, will weave these studio sessions into a broader narrative that will incorporate the stories behind the original Basement Tapes, expound on their cultural significance and chart their enduring influence. The premiere of LOST SONGS: THE BASEMENT TAPES CONTINUED later this year on SHOWTIME will coincide with the release of the Burnett-produced studio album on Electromagnetic Recordings/Harvest Records (Capitol Music Group). LOST SONGS: THE BASEMENT TAPES CONTINUED is a film and recording collaboration by Sam Jones and T Bone Burnett. Carol Cohen serves as producer of the film.

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.

A trove of two dozen unfinished Bob Dylan songs written circa 1967 during his “Basement Tapes” period are being completed by an all-star band assembled by producer T Bone Burnett and including Elvis Costello, Marcus Mumford and My Morning Jacket’s Jim James for release as an album and Showtime special later this year.

“These are not B-level Dylan lyrics,” Burnett, 66, said Monday during a break in filming and recording sessions in Hollywood for the project titled “Lost On the River: The New Basement Tapes.” “They’re lyrics he just never got around to finishing.” Rounding out the band working on the new material are Carolina Chocolate Drops singer Rhiannon Giddens and Dawes lead guitarist and songwriter Taylor Goldsmith.

Burnett and Costello spoke of trying to honor the spirit of the original recordings that came to be known as “The Basement Tapes” because they were recorded by Dylan and the Band while they had holed up in a large house in upstate New York known as Big Pink.

The recordings they made were never intended to be released, but became the first widely circulated bootleg recordings by a major rock artist, and ultimately were released in official form by Dylan’s label, Columbia Records, in 1975.

Among the songs written during that time, many in collaboration with members of the Band, were some of the most highly regarded of both artists’ careers, including “I Shall Be Released,” “Quinn The Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn),” “Tears of Rage” “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” and “Crash on the Levee (Down in the Flood).”

They reportedly wrote and recorded at least 30 new songs, but Dylan had written many more sets of lyrics that he never set to music.

“The New Basement Tapes” project aims to honor the freewheeling spirit of the original sessions, even though, Costello pointed out from the control room of Capitol Records Studio A, “This is the exact opposite of ‘The Basement Tapes’: We’re in the best recording studio in the world, and we’re not in a basement.’”

Another difference is that this project also is being documented by filmmaker Sam Jones, for Showtime's Sho: Close Up documentary "Lost Songs: The Basement Tapes Continued." Jones noted that no photographs apparently were taken during the original Big Pink sessions, although some film footage is said to exist.

One intriguing facet of the current project is the collaboration among the participants. Each has come up with his or her own music for many of the lyrics, resulting in multiple versions of the same songs and allowing a perspective on the ways different artists respond to Dylan’s lyrics.

Each artist acts as producer during the recording of his or her song, and all provide whatever instrumental support the others require.

During the first week of recording, Burnett said they’d laid down nearly 48 tracks and expect to have more than 50 to draw from by the time recording sessions wrap up this week. Among the songs are the title track, “Florida Key,” “Card Shark” and “Hi-De-Ho.”

“It runs the gamut from everybody having a blast in the studio to being really serious about doing things right,” Giddens said.

It hasn’t been decided how many of the tracks ultimately will be released. Dylan's sole involvement in the project, beyond providing the lyrics, appears to be giving it his blessing.

A spokesman for Dylan said he's offered no explanation of why he decided to offer the unfinished songs to Burnett to complete. It's hard not to speculate that the decision is at least partially driven by his experience helping to bring lyrics left unfinished by Hank Williams at his death in 1953 to life by having a variety of rock, pop and country artists to set them to music and record them for the 2011 album "The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams."

A full profile of the project will appear in Calendar closer to the premiere of the film and release of the album, both of which are expected this fall.

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.

Quite intriguing and with the addition of Mr. James and Sam Jones behind the camera filming this could be great fun. I enjoyed his documentary on Wilco "I am trying to break your heart". Most encouraging.

"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'

Elvis Costello, Marcus Mumford, Jim James Record 'Lost' Dylan LyricsThe project, 'Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes,' will come out in the fall

By Kory GrowMarch 25, 2014 4:15 PM ETProducer T Bone Burnett has found a way to extend the legacy of Bob Dylan's legendary "basement tapes," recordings he made with members of the Band in the late Sixties in upstate New York that were heavily bootlegged until their official release in 1975.

With Dylan's permission, he has enlisted the likes of Elvis Costello, Mumford and Sons' Marcus Mumford and My Morning Jacket's Jim James to write and record their own songs using lyrics Dylan penned during his basement sojourn for a release titled Lost on the River: The New Basement Tapes, according to the Los Angeles Times. The release is due out this fall.

"These are not B-level Dylan lyrics," Burnett told the Times. "They're lyrics he just never got around to finishing."

The original Basement Tapes sessions yielded at least 30 songs – 24 of which were issued as The Basement Tapes in the Seventies – that Dylan worked on with the Band in the foundation of a pink West Saugerties, New York house, affectionately called "Big Pink," which also served as the springboard for the Band's debut, Music From Big Pink. In addition to the music that made it out, Dylan wrote many lyrics during that time that were never recorded.

The Burnett-helmed sessions will produce an estimated 50 or so "new" Dylan songs. The rock and folk icon's only involvement in the release has been allowing his lyrics to be used and giving the project his blessing. Each artist, which also includes Dawes' Taylor Goldsmith and Carolina Chocolate Drops' Rhiannon Giddens, has written their own music for the lyrics. They have recorded multiple versions of the same songs and each has worked with one another to record the music needed.

Song titles for the new project include "Florida Key," "Card Shark," "Hi-De-Ho" and "Lost on the River," tough Burnett and his group have not yet decided how many songs will come out on the release.

The making of the new album will serve as the basis for a Showtime documentary dubbed Lost Songs: The Basement Tapes Continued, by filmmaker Sam Jones. It is scheduled to premiere in the fall.

But that cinematic touch is not the only departing point from Dylan's original sessions. "This is the exact opposite of The Basement Tapes," Costello told the Times in Capitol Records Studio A. "We're in the best recording studio in the world, and we're not in a basement."

The print version of the Los Angeles Times article includes details not on the web:

On Monday, Costello was at the mixing board during vocal overdubs of the song "Florida Key." James, Giddens, Goldsmith and Mumford huddled around a single microphone, harmonizing atop the jaunty retro jazz-pop treatment that Costello composed for lyrics expressing a man's quixotic pursuit of an elusive lover.

"Florida Key" is one of the more lighthearted songs. "Lost on the River," by contrast, paints a picture of a man adrift, searching for his bearings — and finding them.

I got lost on the river, but I got foundI got lost on the river, but I didn't drownI got lost on the river, but I didn't go downI got lost on the river, but I got found

A few minutes later, when Costello asked Giddens to put a harmony on one line, she told the engineer during playback, "You can bring his voice up some more." Costello turned, smiled and said, "Nobody's ever complained about my voice not being loud enough."

and

[Dylan and The Band] reportedly wrote and recorded at least 30 new songs, but Dylan had written many more sets of lyrics that he never set to music. Noted Costello, "There's a song called 'Matthew Met Mary' and a kind of refrain [is] 'A thousand doors couldn't hold me back from you.' If you wrote that line, would you leave it in a drawer for 47 years?"

johnfoyle wrote:Elvis worked with T Bone in the last few days in Los Angeles, recording a track for this project. I have that from a credible source who has to remain confidential.

Great scoop you had here! Btw, how specific was your source as to how many tracks EC recorded? From this comment, it seems like just one, but it could also be interpreted that even if he only recorded a single track in the last few days, perhaps he recorded more in previous sessions? I ask because the recent articles seem to suggest a more extensive contribution (which, of course, I'm hoping is the case).

with 20-50 tracks being discussed here, and artists playing on each others tunes regularly it seems, i would bet there is a very large amount of Elvis upon this release. if 20 get released Gent....i would imagine at least 4-5 tracks feature him upon lead vocals.

bronxapostle wrote:with 20-50 tracks being discussed here, and artists playing on each others tunes regularly it seems, i would bet there is a very large amount of Elvis upon this release. if 20 get released Gent....i would imagine at least 4-5 tracks feature him upon lead vocals.

At the very least, the way I read the print version of the article ANCT quoted SEEMS (at least to me, though there is some ambiguity) to suggest EC also recorded a version of "Lost on the River," in addition to the version of "Florida Key" that they explicitly identify as from him. And yeah, I'd agree with your gut feeling assessment that we'll probably get something in the ballpark you describe. But John's earlier post was pretty specific, and it's hard to dispute the proven credibility of his source.

bronxapostle wrote:with 20-50 tracks being discussed here, and artists playing on each others tunes regularly it seems, i would bet there is a very large amount of Elvis upon this release. if 20 get released Gent....i would imagine at least 4-5 tracks feature him upon lead vocals.

At the very least, the way I read the print version of the article ANCT quoted SEEMS (at least to me, though there is so ambiguity) to suggest EC also recorded a version of "Lost on the River," in addition to the version of "Florida Key" that they explicitly identify as from him. And yeah, I'd agree with your gut feeling assessment that we'll probably get something in the ballpark you describe. But John's earlier post was pretty specific, and it's hard to dispute the proven credibility of his source.

In any case, I'm really excited for this.

Knowing Our Man, he has problably written music for all of the lyrics.

Anyway, the EC/BD-songs that aren't chosen for Lost On The River, may get played on the upcoming solo tour. So, I'm really looking forward to this release and the solo tour.

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.